Before and After: A Warm, Minimalist Bathroom Make-Under for Less Than $110
Just because a bathroom is tiny doesn’t mean it has to feel cramped or uncomfortable. With some light colors and thoughtful décor, small really can be mighty.
That was the approach Jasmin Robertson of Brick Dust Baby took when she decided to renovate the only bathroom in her new home. When she first moved in, the space had a wooden ceiling, cork floors, floral feature tiles, and a beach hut border on bright blue walls—all of which were in fine shape, but none of which fit in with her personal design taste.
“We needed to do what we could to make the space feel fresher, cleaner, lighter and brighter,” Jasmin says. But she was saving for a full-scale renovation, so it was important to her that she didn’t spend money on a room that would, eventually, be ripped out. Her goal? To update the room with as little money as possible.
She started the renovation with a deep clean and a light sanding of the floor and walls to make the paint glide on better. Then, she used leftover white paint from her old home to paint the tiled walls and ceiling; leftover paint in a cool pale gray went on the drywall.
“As an area that often gets wet, I knew I needed to cover the primed wood bath and sink surrounds with a hard-wearing paint,” Jasmin said. “I had most of a large tin of Colourtrend paint in Spring Tide left over from the hallway woodwork in our old house which I decided to use. The color is also so versatile and such a gorgeous shade of gray-green. It seems to work well in period houses; it’s calm and grown up but still feels modern.”
Jasmin used the light green-gray on all of the wood touches in the bathroom, from the tub surround to the vanity and medicine cabinet.
Next, Jasmin bought and placed down self-adhesive vinyl floor tiles from Dunelm in the Stellar pattern and bought a pack of gray grout pens from Amazon to clean up the old grout that was stained and chipping.
The finishing touches to warm the space up: art and potted plants of various heights and shades.
In just a week and for less than £80 (about $108), Jasmin created the perfect bathroom to await her home renovation. Now, it’s somewhere that’s relaxing and more in tune with her style—and she was able to do it without taking a huge chunk of her future renovation budget.
Inspired? Submit your own project here.